Watch: Lady Gaga Gets Horny At The Grammys

Lady Gaga performed "Born This Way," the much-talked about first single from her forthcoming album. Aside from being hatched from an egg, the performance itself was, for the most party, relatively stock and conventional. My only question was this: What's the deal with the shoulder horn?

Comments

the prosthetic shoulders and 'horns' on the face are a reference to Alexander McQueen's Atlantis collection. His last before his suicide, the show at which 'Bad Romance' premiered, and the show that much of her ~fashions~ in the Bad Romance video were taken from.

If you do a google image search for 'mcqueen atlantis makeup' you'll see what I mean

Posted by: Michael | Feb 13, 2011 11:52:37 PM

that's her egg tooth.

Posted by: wtf | Feb 13, 2011 11:53:14 PM

Not only was I born this way, I was born again this way.

Posted by: BornThisWay | Feb 13, 2011 11:55:00 PM

This was good and she looked and sounded great but seriously...thanking Whitney Houston?? When half the show was basically a rendition of Express Yourself, Hung Up (backup dancers crimping pretty much the same way), Vogue (dancers AGAIN), Kylie's All The Lovers (All the dancers taking their clothes off) AND Willow Smith's Whip My Hair (well that's self explanatory)?

As far as gaga is concerned, her performance was fine but I'm really not digging the song so it doesn't rank up there as the best performance of the night for me. Doesn't even clear top three performances to be honest.

Posted by: Ray | Feb 14, 2011 1:18:44 AM

The thank you to Whitney was a dig at Madonna. It's been rumored that Whitney and Madonna hate each other. Or did for years. Whitney reportedly said if any of her kids grew up to be like Madonna, she'd kill them. Meanwhile, we saw how that all turned out for Whitney.

Gaga is barking up the wrong tree if you ask me. The purpose of thanking Whitney seems pretty clear to me and I don't think she wants to start a war with Madge.

Posted by: Sam | Feb 14, 2011 1:20:55 AM

Janelle Monáe was amazing

Posted by: neverstops | Feb 14, 2011 1:57:24 AM

The original artist and the egg http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YIFsdVPXMnE&feature=player_embedded

Posted by: Toro Castano | Feb 14, 2011 1:58:07 AM

I honestly don't get the recent antagonism toward Gaga.

Born This Way is an instant pop hit, and calling it a rip off of Express Yourself is naive. Express Yourself, after all, sampled Respect Yourself, and Born This Way comes from a longer tradition than Madonna. Calling Madonna the beacon of original pop is super naive. She, like Gaga, drew upon a long tradition. I think Born This Way also draws upon a long gay disco tradition. Just look at Born To Be Alive.

the song is also the most gay-friendly #1 song of all time. It's also the first #1 song to use the word transgender. No other pop star is as vocal about gay rights.

As for the Born This Way message — yes it's essentializing and problematic, but the song is campy enough to make it excusable. "Whether you're black white or beige, Chola or Orient made." Gaga is clearly having fun here, playing up the silliness of pop in general. Pop, after all, is supposed to exist in a different world, one of fantasy.

Yes it's political, but it's politicism is still based on the world of pop.

I think it's a brilliant start to what promises to be a revolutionary pop album. PEOPLE NEED TO LIGHTEN UP GEEZ.

And it's endlessly listenable. It plays amazingly in a club.

Posted by: N | Feb 14, 2011 2:01:11 AM

My big Grammy question is this, how come nobody seems to have a picture of Ricky Martin and his shiney silver sausage fest pants? Was he happy to be there or what?

Posted by: Scot | Feb 14, 2011 2:28:06 AM

I still don't understand why if she is go gay friendly, that she is making deal$ with homophobic Target.

Posted by: PDX Guy | Feb 14, 2011 2:33:57 AM

sigh...

Anytime Madonna sampled or got inspired from other music or imagery it was not mainstream stuff and it was from generations past...and she twisted it so as to pretty much break any taboo she could and make it her own
be it concerning homosexuality,sexuality or feminism...before it was kewl or in the mainstream

Gaga has built her career copying pretty much every look or career step Madge (and plenty of others btw) took in the past 25 years and just shoved them all down our throats in two years

...to a generation that generally has the attention span of a fly it seems "revolutionary"

great for her and doing what she has to do in the music bizz

if she shut her mouth and stopped verbally masturbating about her importance in pop culture and self-associating to warhol or any other pop icon id be fan to some degree...lord knows i started off as one....but she completely lost me

this generation (and the pop world) needed someone like Gaga after all the manufactured tarts that dominated the charts

BUT i should not be looking at a clip and be constantly reminded of Madonna...if that is the case dont pretend you are original or creative...just another manure-factured startlet :)

after the Reagan years we got Madonna
after the Bush years we got Gaga
its an unavoidable reaction pop culture wise,i think

still the lady needs to calm the f#@k down and show some respect and self awareness

that Whitney "thank you" was idiotic...besides Whitney's history with Madge,when in the world would Whitney be caught dead singing that kind of song?style wise or theme wise...

but Gawd bless homo friendly (...not!)Target and the money she makes with the "deluxe edition"

yeah...wooohoooo...

Posted by: yori | Feb 14, 2011 3:06:26 AM

>Anytime Madonna sampled or got inspired
>from other music or imagery it was not
>mainstream stuff and it was from
>generations past.

Are you deaf, or just that ignorant? "Express Yourself" was a clear nod to the Staple Singer's "Respect Yourself", which was less than 20 years old at the time, and Sly Stone's work, again only about 20 years old. She ripped the title off from a very famous soul song "Express Yourself" by Charles Wright. Madonna's version came out in 1989, about 21 years ago. If it was OK for Madonna to rip a bunch of material less than 20 years old off, it's certainly OK for Gaga to draw a little inspiration from Madge's more than two decade old trick bag.

I won't even go into how Madonna essentially photocopied Debbie Harry's image. That was ripping off something 3 years old, not three decades old. And then there was her Confessions on a Dance Floor record, in which she should have confessed to shamelessly ripping off Goldfrapp. I mean, I like Madonna, but she's about as original as a one dollar bill.

And I think Gaga thanked Whitney because this track sounds as much like Whitney's old stuff as it sounds like any of Madonna's. Thematically it's a lot closer to "The Greatest Love Of All" than it is to "Express Yourself".

Posted by: Jacknasty | Feb 14, 2011 3:40:50 AM

I wish I understood the appeal. Take away the clothes and staging and what have you got? Mediocrity.

Posted by: Judy Chicago | Feb 14, 2011 3:48:59 AM

Who cares?? Its the Grammys, a parade of obvious winners, total banality and blandness like never seen.. since the last Grammys show anyway. Its a complete joke of an awards show. So many catagories I think everyone on earth has a grammy somewhere..

Posted by: Rovex | Feb 14, 2011 3:52:02 AM

The deal with the horn was sensation for sensation's sake, which is her whole schtick, and fills the void talent might otherwise occupy.

Posted by: JAMES | Feb 14, 2011 4:06:16 AM

Honestly, are some of you 90 years old? These kids and their damn long hair! What's up with this 23 skiddoo? Why can't they respect their elders?

Posted by: justme | Feb 14, 2011 4:48:29 AM

No but some of us are 30, which is old enough to know she is an unoriginal hack.
She isnt shocking or controversial or even interesting, we have seen it done better and more daringly before many times.

Posted by: Rovex | Feb 14, 2011 4:54:38 AM

LOL..Poor Lady GaGach

Posted by: Chris DaChocolatebearcub | Feb 14, 2011 5:10:23 AM

Nobody looks good wearing condom. It was tacky, Showgirls dance meets Madonna's Blond Ambiton. And she lip sync. I don't get her. She and bieber are the biggest stars today that's sad.

Posted by: Marc | Feb 14, 2011 5:54:39 AM

All of your negative comments make me sad as I start my day. This is a song that celebrates the greatness of being gay, and many of you bitchy queens had to run to your keyboard to complain. I'm embarrassed at the gays who can't say, "Thank you Gaga for the love!"

Posted by: Mike | Feb 14, 2011 6:52:25 AM

I have to agree. Both Madonna and Gaga are great in their own right. Is Gaga influenced by Madonna? Yes, she has admitted as much many times. But to say Madonna is original and Gaga is a copycat is laughable. All artists, including Madonna, have been influenced by those that came before. And I just don't see how Madonna's style and Lady Gaga's are the same. Madonna used sex to sell, Gaga seems to use crazy over the top outfits. The only thing similar about the two styles is that they were both gimmicks.

When I read these "she's stealing this and that and has no talent" comments I have to laugh. Lady Gaga, like Madonna before her, has more talent than any of you old bitter queens trashing her for no reason will ever have.

I swear, reading the comments her brings me back to the second grade school yard. Grow up people!

Posted by: InTristin | Feb 14, 2011 7:08:31 AM

We have to respect each others views, so if one person likes her, hey, you like her....personally to me...she SUCKS!

Posted by: TJ | Feb 14, 2011 7:24:41 AM

Seriously? Who really cares about the Madonna vs. Gaga wars. Some people just need to get a life. Better yet, grow up.

The entire show was a complete snoozefest.

Probably the best performance was by Muse and Cee-Lo, with his Elton John getup via the 70s circuit. Other than that...FAIL!